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Special day focuses on unfair working conditions |
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Written by Jeff Wiebe
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Tuesday, October 07 2008, 11:01 PM |
Some people love their jobs. For others, decent work is something they can only dream of.
With that in mind, the Christian Labour Association of Canada celebrated the World Day for Decent Work on Tuesday, in an effort to create awareness of unfair working conditions.
“What it’s trying to do is bring attention to work and to some of the things that trade unions want to accomplish: dignity in work, trying to fight against the worst forms of labour injustices,” said Brian Dijkema, an Ontario representative of the CLAC.
Trade unions around the world celebrated the day by conducting everything from bake sales to organized marches. It’s all part of an effort to spread the idea of decent work — defined by the CLAC as work where human dignity is respected; where workers receive a fair income and job security; where workers are free to express their concerns; and where men and women receive equal treatment and opportunity.
Dick Heinen, executive director of CLAC, said he doesn’t expect the issue of fair working conditions to fade into the background, even as the economy experiences a downturn.
“There’s always going to be improvements that are necessary, but that’s not usually an issue relating to tough times in the economy — these are basic human conditions that everybody recognizes need to happen,” said Heinen.
“People are entitled to work in decent conditions.”
Heinen cites his organization’s role in fighting for better accommodation for oilsands workers in Alberta, saying he thinks those changes are here to stay.
“We don’t anticipate that there’s going to be very many changes to what we’ve done already, because these changes and these initiatives that we’ve had have been entrenched,” he explained.
“The entire quality of the camps has improved and I don’t think there’s any going back on that.”
The CLAC and other trade unions are also working to help include under-employed groups, like women and aboriginals, find careers.
“There’s all sorts of steps being taken to make sure that they get included in the economy in Alberta,” said Heinen, adding his organization is developing training programs for aboriginal workers.
“All of that is part of creating a productive day for a fair wage for all these people, which is what this whole day is all about.”
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Last Updated ( Monday, August 10 2009, 2:34 PM )
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